The present invention relates to an optimizing controller to be delayed in combination with a straight rod stock processing stirrup bender of that type taught in Applicant's co-pending application Ser. No. 08/170,611 which was filed on Dec. 20, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,708, for a STRAIGHT ROD STOCK PROCESSOR, wherein the instant invention further enhances the operational efficiencies and utility of such a stirrup bender by enabling a combination of bent rod stock profiles in multiple counts to be produced from an individual infed straight rod stock bar so that the minimum dimension of tail piece wastage consistent with the tail piece handling capability of the stirrup bender is consistently realized.
In Applicant's above-identified co-pending Application, the machine teaching thereof embodies the incorporation of a set of secondary rod stock compression rollers positioned just forward of the stirrup bender head on the infeed side thereof so that essentially the entire length of an infed rod stock piece may be thereby positioned and controlled in delivery to the stirrup bender head for processing into bent rod stock pieces. This incorporation of a set of secondary rod stock compression rollers enables the reduction of tail piece wastage from each individually infed straight rod stock bar from something on the order of five-feet to less than one-foot. However, if consumption of an infed bar in the production of bent rod stock pieces is such that the tail piece remainder is such that there is not sufficient bar remaining to produce another piece but results in a tail length greater than one-foot, then production of multiples of that particular profile, and consumption of an infed straight rod stock bar in a plurality of linear dimensional requirement multiples for producing nothing but that one particular profile per se during the machine run of the individual infed straight rod stock bar therethrough, does not enable full realization of the machine capability for reducing the length of tail piece wastage to a minimum. On the other hand, if operational control of the straight rod stock processing stirrup bender in the production of bent rod stock pieces can be managed to combine multiples of different bend profiles having different linear dimensional requirement which are put together in such a way so as to make the most efficient utilization in consumption of the total linear dimension of the infed straight rod stock bar in consistently approaching a tail piece wastage in the vicinity of one-foot or so, then utilization of the straight rod stock processing stirrup bender is thereby consistently optimized and tail piece wastage consistently minimized, which are those capabilities provided by the optimizing controller teaching and method hereof.
Various bending machine control apparatus in the prior art have taught means whereby a more efficient production capability is realized from the bending machine, and wastage under coincidentally optimal production circumstances is minimized. Such bending machine and control combinations representatively include Applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 5,315,522 dated May 24, 1994, for a TABLE BENDER CONTROLLER, as well as the teaching by Bauer et al in U.S. Pat. No. 5,319,918 dated Jun. 14, 1994, in which there is disclosed an automated method for the customized making of horseshoes. On the larger production scale, U.S. Pat. No. 4,486,840 to Klein et al dated Dec. 4, 1984, provides for an automated control on a press brake for the selection of various gauge and ram positions which allow for both such variables to act in producing bends when forming materials with different flange lengths and angles.
None of the foregoing machines, however, nor the control means employed respectively in combination therewith, as does the machine and control combination of the instant invention and the method provided thereby, enable the production of output pieces in bend profile and count combinations which when processing a single piece of input stock for conversion allows for a designed optimization of production circumstances thereby minimizing the remainder or tail wastage to a level which is consistent with the handling and processing capabilities of the production machine, so as to in turn consistently optimize production and minimize wastage.